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Scientists with the Indonesian Centre for Food Crops Research and Development are reporting an alarming increase in infestations of brown planthoppers in the province of West Java. Writing on the Ricehoppers blog, plant pathologist, Muhammad Muhsin, says that the area under attack this year increased from 450 ha in February to around 10,000 ha in March, and that two associated virus diseases, rice ragged stunt and rice grassy stunt, are also increasing. Not coincidentally, the areas under attack (Karawang, Subang, Indramayu and Cirebon) are main areas of hybrid rice production.

Muhsin points out that 200 ha of hybrid rice fields in Subang belonging to the national seed company, PT Sang Hyang Seri, were completely devastated by a brown planthopper outbreak. Sang Hyang is developing hybrid rice through a partnership with Devgen, a Belgian multinational seed company partly owned by Monsanto

BPH and hopperburn in rice hybrid seed company Sang Hyang Seri (SHS) Subang (Photo: ICFCRD)

According to Indonesia's Ministry of Agriculture, 650,000 ha were planted with hybrid rice in 2009, and the government plans to increase this area every year, with a goal of 1,000,000 ha by 2015.

Dr. Kasumbogo Untung, Professor in Entomology at the Agriculture Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, worries about what the government's aggressive programme to promote hybrid rice will mean for farmers, the environment and the country's rice supply. Dr. Untung is the most senior entomologist in Indonesia involved in the development of Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

"The average yield of hybrid rice is not significantly higher and in some areas yield failures are a regular occurrence," says Dr. Untung. "As the hybrid rice area increases, the incidence of brown planthoppers, ragged stunt virus and other rice pest and diseases will go up dramatically and I am very concerned about the amount of chemical pesticides that will be released in our environment."

For Dr. Untung the overall costs of hybrid rice- economic, environmental and social- are higher and more detrimental than any benefits it may provide.

"Certainly the sustainability of our rice self sufficiency will be threatened," he adds.

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20 Apr 2010 | Koen den Braber

Having worked for years in rice in Indonesia and other countries in the region, including specific research on BPH and pesticides, I think the issue could be a bit different. In my opinion it are not the hybrid varieties per se that are the cause of the problem, but the large amounts of pesticides used on them. Pesticides kill the BPH's natural enemies leading to BPH resurgence.

14 Sep 2010 | Rice Authority

in our country the Philippines we have already intruduced this hybrid several years back and turns to be a hit to

21 Nov 2010 | Yizhenhua

Rice planthopper outbreak is not the incentive, combined with personal experience to talk about the main reasons: 1, climatic reasons. Planthopper outbreaks have a certain periodicity and regularity, and this year is the main rice producing areas of Asia and the world's most serious outbreak of planthoppers year. Including these with conventional rice varieties in Thailand-based countries. 2, the lack of rotation. West Java is Indonesia's main rice producing areas, year round farming, the lack of rotation, which is leading the main reason for the outbreak of planthoppers. Throughout the West Java rice producing areas, the incidence of both regions is the lack of rotation, a rotation of rice-growing area (West Java mountain rice and conventional rice breeding base - soybean rotation) incidence of light. 3, the cultivation time. Indonesia's independence geographical location and climatic conditions, especially West Java, fertile soil, good irrigation conditions for cultivation of rice production areas all year round, year after year after year farmers farming, planting time is not uniform, rice production is inconsistent, year after year has rice cultivation, to planthopper host provides a continuous and further accelerate its propagation speed.

Preventive measures: 1, strengthening the agricultural extension department of Indonesia's main rice producing policy guidance to the rotation. 2, uniform rotation regional farming time to ensure a large area at the same time sowing, earlier maturity, fallow period to reduce the host. 3, the promotion of good resistance to hybrid rice, conventional rice varieties. 4, strengthening the early warning system for pest prediction, timely, appropriate and comprehensive prevention and control.

INDONESIA: Planthoppers hit hybrid rice